The benefits for a First-Class Instructor at Ganwu Dojo headquarters were generous.
After taking up his post, Lu Qingshan received an estate covering several thousand square meters.
In Ganwu City, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold, owning such an estate to live in already placed his status above ninety-nine percent of the city's residents.
The estate came with a butler, four servants, and two cooks. With them around, Lu Qingshan needed to concern himself with nothing in his daily life beyond cultivating and teaching his disciples.
Lu Qingshan was very satisfied with these arrangements.
After all, he would need to stay here for a long time to come, teaching and nurturing students, fulfilling the role of a good instructor.
"Lord Lu Qingshan, this is the ten-day menu the cooks have drawn up. Please take a look and see whether anything needs adjusting..." The butler, Luo Er, respectfully presented a list.
The menu listed lavish dishes, some featuring ingredients Lu Qingshan had never even heard of, with no repeats over the ten days.
This was another benefit of being a First-Class Instructor.
Ganwu Dojo provided an extremely generous annual meal allowance, so there was no need to pay out of his own pocket.
"This is fine. I'm not particular about food, as long as it's clean and hygienic. Just prepare some roast meat tonight," Lu Qingshan instructed.
Luo Er withdrew to make the arrangements. Meanwhile, Lu Qingshan sat in the estate's garden and brought up his points interface.
Name: Lu Qingshan Position: First-Class Instructor (Domain Lord Level) Points: 0
The conspicuous "0" was somewhat glaring, but Lu Qingshan did not mind. Points were an important resource for motivating Ganwu Practitioners to work, so they certainly would not be given away lightly.
With zero points, he could buy nothing. His immediate priority was to find a way to get some points.
He began searching the exchange catalog for the items he needed.
Ordinary Bloodline Evolution Agent: 1 point.
S-Class Bloodline Evolution Agent: 10 points.
SS-Class Bloodline Evolution Agent: 1,000 points.
Life Fruit: 20,000 points.
As for the Domain Lord Level Bloodline Evolution Agent, he could not find it in the catalog. He would probably only have a chance to obtain such a core resource by joining the Core Layer of one of the five major powers.
However, Lu Qingshan had his own plans.
He intended to exchange for an SS-Class Bloodline Evolution Agent for Lei Ming. That way, the Evolution Agent returned by the system should be no lower than Domain Lord Level in quality.
The first issue was points.
By comparing the values of other items, Lu Qingshan roughly worked out the market price of points.
One point corresponded to approximately one hundred million Universe Coins.
In that case, getting an SS-Class Evolution Agent through internal channels didn't seem difficult?
A hundred billion Universe Coins was nothing to him now.
While he was looking through the information, the cook finished preparing the roast meat. The fragrant slices were carefully cut into chunks and brought to Lu Qingshan's side.
"Not bad." Lu Qingshan tasted a bite. It was delicious. After ten years spent traveling, it had been a long time since he had enjoyed anything this good.
After a few bites of roast meat, he took a jar of fine aged wine from his Space Ring. This wine was called "Three Thousand Dreams of the Star River," and his wife, Catherine, had brewed it herself. Thirty thousand years later, several hundred jars still remained in his ring.
The wine's aroma remained rich and mellow. It was slightly astringent at first, but as he savored it, sweetness gradually emerged, leaving a lingering aftertaste.
Lu Qingshan ate meat and drank wine at his leisure, thoroughly at ease.
"Are you the new instructor?" A rough voice rang out from outside the gate.
Lu Qingshan looked up and saw a man in red robes standing at the entrance.
"I only reported for duty today and haven't had time to visit the neighbors yet. Come in and have a seat..." Lu Qingshan rose to invite him in. Anyone who appeared here had to be a fellow instructor at Ganwu Dojo.
He had intended to get acquainted with some instructors anyway, so naturally, he would not miss this opportunity.
"My name's Chi Yan, a First-Class Instructor in the Fire Law. I live right next door," the red-robed man said heartily.
"So you're Brother Chi Yan." Lu Qingshan cupped his hands. "Care to join me?"
"Sure! I just finished teaching, and my mouth's been craving some flavor. Let's try your cook's handiwork." Without standing on ceremony, Chi Yan picked up a piece of roast meat and chewed. "Hmm... tastes decent, though the heat control was a little off. If I roasted it, I could make it a few tenths better."
Lu Qingshan had no doubt that the other man was boasting. For an instructor specializing in the Fire Law, controlling fire was naturally a signature skill.
"I'll have to try your cooking next time, Brother Chi Yan. Here, see what you think of my wine..." Lu Qingshan poured him a cup of Three Thousand Dreams of the Star River.
Chi Yan raised the cup and drained it in one gulp.
"It's aged enough, but the flavor's a little mild. Not the kind I like. Here, try my fiery liquor!"
As he spoke, Chi Yan also took out a jar of liquor and filled Lu Qingshan's cup without giving him a chance to refuse.
"Cheers!"
The two raised their cups and drank together. As the liquor went down his throat, Lu Qingshan immediately felt a scorching heat shoot straight into his lungs and organs, as though he were inside a furnace.
"That's strong!" Lu Qingshan did not deliberately dispel the effects of the alcohol, openly experiencing its overbearing, direct stimulation. Unlike the delicate, lingering taste of Three Thousand Dreams of the Star River, fiery liquor was all about this simple, brutal impact.
No wonder Chi Yan liked this kind of liquor. Drinking it delivered an unparalleled sensation.
Still, Lu Qingshan preferred his own Three Thousand Dreams of the Star River... The meaning it held was something no other fine wine could replace.
After three rounds of drinks, the two grew familiar with each other. Lu Qingshan took the opportunity to ask about points.
"You've only just arrived, Brother Qingshan. It's perfectly normal not to have any points." Chi Yan spoke briskly and directly. "Earning points is simple. Besides nurturing outstanding students, you can take missions. The dojo issues missions every month, and the points rewards are usually generous. If you're interested, I'll bring you along on my next mission."
"Brother Chi Yan, how do you exchange Universe Coins for points? I'd like to get some points to exchange for Bloodline Potions for my disciples. Do you know a way?" Lu Qingshan asked.
Chi Yan let out a full-bellied burp. "In principle, one point is worth about a hundred million Universe Coins. But points are more precious. They can get you good things that Universe Coins can't buy, so private trades carry a hefty premium. Basically, one point can fetch two hundred million Universe Coins."
"That's not too bad..." Lu Qingshan breathed a sigh of relief. A premium was nothing to fear; what worried him was finding no one willing to trade. From Chi Yan's words, an unspoken understanding had already formed around exchanging points, which meant it was commonplace.
Lu Qingshan pressed on. "Brother Chi Yan, could you part with some points? Or introduce me to someone willing to trade? I'll accept two hundred million per point."
"Why go to all that trouble? However many you need, I'll trade them to you myself." Chi Yan waved a large hand.
Lu Qingshan's eyes lit up. "I need a thousand points."
"A trifling matter. They're yours!" Chi Yan was extremely forthright.
Soon, Chi Yan transferred a thousand points, and Lu Qingshan transferred two hundred billion Universe Coins into his account.
The transaction was fair, but Lu Qingshan knew he owed the other man a favor.
Having only just arrived, finding someone willing to exchange points would not have been easy. Relying on himself alone, who knew how long it would have taken to accumulate that many points?
Lu Qingshan did not hide anything. Right in front of Chi Yan, he spent the thousand points to exchange for an SS-Class Bloodline Evolution Agent.
The two continued drinking and chatting freely. As cups passed back and forth, the beginnings of a friendship formed.
(End of chapter)